From the days of EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT, to today's around the clock news coverage on CNN, news has always been a part of our life. News agencies such as Reuters and Associated Press are some of the leading news agencies in the world. Rupert Murdoch and Ted Turner are an example of rich and powerful newsmen. Journalism had to start somewhere, but where?

Historians believe that the first prototype or piece of news originated during the Roman Empire. It was called Acta Diurna. This news sheet was published daily in 59 BC and hung in prominent places. It recorded social and political events (The Encyclopedia Americana, 184). There is also evidence that the Chinese had a news sheet called Tching-Pao or news of the palace. This was during the T'ang dynasty. This report was h

Journalism in North America started at the end of the 17th century. It was 1690 when Benjamin Harris first published and edited his three-page newspaper Publick Occurrences; a Boston based newspaper (there was both a domestic and foreign issue). Benjamin Harris was suppressed and arrested after the first issue. Although only one issue was published it lay the building block for future colony newspapers. In 1704, John Campbell founded the Boston News-Letter; the first continuously printed American newspaper. The newspaper contained finance, foreign news, births, deaths and social events. The Massachusetts Bay Colony governor banned and censored the paper. In 1721 a man by the name of James Franklin founded the New England Courant in Boston. His staff includes his brother Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin later left the New England Courant, and went to start his own paper the Pennsylvanian Gazette. This newspaper soon failed, and he went on to start another newspaper that was called General Magazine, which also failed. Benjamin Franklin eventually went on to become a diplomat and a statesman. In New York newspapers were beginning to appear. The Gazette was founded in 1725, and several others soon followed. One of these papers will be notably remembered. A German-American, named John Peter Zenger founded the New York Weekly Journal. Zenger's paper was criticizing the British colonial governor of New York. Zenger was soon arrested and jailed. He was charged with seditious libel. Zenger was tried in a court of law, and found not guilty. This was a major achievement in the fight for Freedom of Speech. By 1750 there were over 12 newspapers in colonies all over America. Newspapers were beginning to have a serious impact on America. Not only were newspapers flourishing, but also the population had burgeoned to over 1 million people. By 1775 growth in America had reached to 2.5 million, and the number of papers had jumped to 48. Circulation had jumped to 400 subscribers per newspaper, which was quiet impressive back then. Also newspapers in America were beginning to have a libertarian tone. Newspapers began to print more essays' then actual news. To fight back, the British Stamp Tax was imposed in 1765. The stamp tax united many newspapers and their editors in support of independence. In 1766 the stamp tax was repealed. Samuel Adams, an American patriot who also edited the Boston Gazette, organized the Committee of Correspondences. This committee had agents that kept track of events in the colonies. In 1776 newspapers carried on their front pages the Declaration of Independence. Throughout the war, newspapers brought military accounts, and increased number of readers. Business was generated b

Some common words found in the essay are:
Encyclopedia Americana, America Newspapers, Thomas Jefferson, Associated Press, Daily Courant, Queen Elizabeth, AD Gwinn, Benjamin Franklin, Industrial Revolution, Book Knowledge, stamp tax, associated press, encyclopedia americana, americana 184, encyclopedia americana 184, freedom speech, stamp tax imposed, newspapers beginning, civil war, acta diurna, york sun, printing press, british stamp tax,
Approximate Word count = 1817
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)